The Facts
* Federal funds constitute approximately 34%, or $68.7 billion, of the 2014-15 budget. This marks an increase of $3.9 billion (or 6%) above federal aid for the 2012-13 budget.
* Federal funds per person went from $1,965 in 2004-05 to $2,522 in 2014-15, a 28% increase, burdening all Texans.
* Over the 2001 to 2012 period, the federal funds share of the budget averaged 35.5% in the Lone Star State, ranking Texas the 13th highest in the nation.
Recommendations
* Prepare for the next federal budget crisis by identifying and measuring the cost of the mandates attached to federal funds.
* Evaluate the economic and fiscal impacts of a rising share of federal funds when writing the budget and minimize any increase in federal aid or actually reduce it.
* Rising federal aid funding for transportation and other state-level projects suggest legislators should consider ways to return more state dollars to fund projects without strings attached.